Thanks. I’m sure most of it comes from the Rio Grande, or the area’s “resacas” . They have a complex piping and canal system from the Rio Grande that runs through the area from its heyday of agriculture. Most of the water that originates from Colorado and New Mexico is gone once it reaches El Paso. The Texas section of the Rio Grande is over 1200 miles long and there are a number of tributaries from both sides of the border. The Rio Concho from the Mexican side feeds it right before Big Bend. Last year there was a drought, so the majority of water was consumed by Mexican farmers, leading to the Rio Grande running dry in Santa Elena Canyon in Big Bend. Further east you have the Pecos River, Devils River, and a number of creeks that feed it along from the Texas side. There’s also a number of dams and levees. There is an interesting book called the ‘Tecate Journals’ of a guy who tries to kayak the complete Texas section. There was a number of dry sections he had to hike or hitch a ride past.Melt in the Sun wrote: ↑Tue Feb 21, 2023 7:39 am Looks like a really cool area; I've always wanted to visit. Do you know the water supply situation there? A quick google says they get it from the Rio Grande, but I have no reference of that source's long-term outlook. I canoed down part of it at Big Bend 20 years ago, and it was nearly dry then...not much fun to paddle.
Rio Grande Valley, South Padre Island
- Meangreen94z
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Re: Rio Grande Valley, South Padre Island
Austin, Texas
- Meangreen94z
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Re: Rio Grande Valley, South Padre Island
I think image 4 and 7 may be Hyphaene coriacea.Meangreen94z wrote: ↑Mon Feb 20, 2023 6:19 pm The Brownsville doctor office of a palm enthusiast(active online). Interesting to see the results after it dropped somewhere between 27-29°F last December. Brownsville has seen below freezing temperatures twice in the last 3 winters, after going over 30 years with only 1 borderline freeze.
8D848BCD-5CC5-4396-B62F-0FC2C87EF959.jpeg03794D00-0C36-4E96-A2F9-0A85044CF695.jpeg1319BB2B-3162-4B0A-87D9-DC3527D2E078.jpeg65AD93F6-B54E-4586-A317-7695919E9B6D.jpegE84A677F-1258-4606-9879-8629A0EBD004.jpeg34F4D2EA-127D-4DC8-B8A7-B7F31B60B444.jpeg3F2FE4F2-43A6-4B30-978A-ACE2842CBC61.jpeg71569201-04A3-4EDD-89DF-C47828A4EF8D.jpeg78A703DE-DB55-4F26-A730-4004C5B059FB.jpeg353C4568-DCCA-4843-948E-8B5B9CCD3500.jpeg
Casas Adobes, AZ
- Meangreen94z
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- Meangreen94z
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- Meangreen94z
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- Meangreen94z
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Re: Rio Grande Valley, South Padre Island
Note the 1st shot of Mammillaria prolifera is growing beneath an Ebenopsis ebano. The 2nd shot of this cactus includes the distinctive remains of it's seed pod (lower right). Before the pod splits in 2, it resembles a large dog turd. I have a 15' tree in my front yard, which is evergreen if it doesn't get too cold. It is a great tree to grow here in the Sonoran desert. It is much sturdier to wind gusts (and blowing over) than a mesquite, but is far less commonly grown. About it's only drawback is it's slow rate of growth.Meangreen94z wrote: ↑Tue Feb 21, 2023 8:53 pm 76BA147C-E825-4465-BF3E-C9214BC9AC83.jpeg4D832B7A-73AA-4330-A0FE-321140FED0E0.jpeg443E05AD-D859-4905-AAF3-8CFE57B01A16.jpeg851FAE99-468C-4DDE-95CD-BF643A3DCDCA.jpegE2F02804-4017-409A-814C-1F1135EA4917.jpeg90B30B49-1D9B-4FD0-9F57-122DC8708FB7.jpeg282C4EA2-73FB-4ADE-86E7-583DE4F129D5.jpegEF128C4E-8A72-41E7-8533-C8D3B6DC04A9.jpeg2D44C9DB-CF9A-4B48-A43E-A1BA865AC452.jpegAD6CFA0F-E8E2-4E02-9AA8-C78A04EAAF51.jpeg
Great images as usual!
Casas Adobes, AZ
- Meangreen94z
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Re: Rio Grande Valley, South Padre Island
Thanks. I didn’t even notice that ‘Texas Ebony’. I honestly pulled off the side of the road to take picture of that large Opuntia alta and realized all of those small cacti were growing there. It’s probably what I will focus on the next time I’m down there, just walking along that road. That and the diverse bird life down there. It’s a 5-6 hour drive but I will probably be back in the next couple months while the weather is nice.Tom in Tucson wrote: ↑Wed Feb 22, 2023 1:34 pmNote the 1st shot of Mammillaria prolifera is growing beneath an Ebenopsis ebano. The 2nd shot of this cactus includes the distinctive remains of it's seed pod (lower right). Before the pod splits in 2, it resembles a large dog turd. I have a 15' tree in my front yard, which is evergreen if it doesn't get too cold. It is a great tree to grow here in the Sonoran desert. It is much sturdier to wind gusts (and blowing over) than a mesquite, but is far less commonly grown. About it's only drawback is it's slow rate of growth.Meangreen94z wrote: ↑Tue Feb 21, 2023 8:53 pm 76BA147C-E825-4465-BF3E-C9214BC9AC83.jpeg4D832B7A-73AA-4330-A0FE-321140FED0E0.jpeg443E05AD-D859-4905-AAF3-8CFE57B01A16.jpeg851FAE99-468C-4DDE-95CD-BF643A3DCDCA.jpegE2F02804-4017-409A-814C-1F1135EA4917.jpeg90B30B49-1D9B-4FD0-9F57-122DC8708FB7.jpeg282C4EA2-73FB-4ADE-86E7-583DE4F129D5.jpegEF128C4E-8A72-41E7-8533-C8D3B6DC04A9.jpeg2D44C9DB-CF9A-4B48-A43E-A1BA865AC452.jpegAD6CFA0F-E8E2-4E02-9AA8-C78A04EAAF51.jpeg
Great images as usual!
Austin, Texas
- Meangreen94z
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Re: Rio Grande Valley, South Padre Island
Here is a great video from “Crime pays but botany doesn’t”. Warning there is his typical foul language.
Here are the species and their approximate times in the video, some span multiple sections:
Hechtia glomerata 1:23
Jatropha dioica 7:05
Echinocactus texensis 9:30
Lophophora williamsii(peyote) 10:33
Ancistrocactus sheeri 12:46/14:33
Echinocereus enneacanthus 14:50
Jatropha cathartica 15:05
Agave lophantha 16:20
Yucca treculeana 17:43
Mammilaria heyderi 19:49
Agave asperrima 25:05
Here are the species and their approximate times in the video, some span multiple sections:
Hechtia glomerata 1:23
Jatropha dioica 7:05
Echinocactus texensis 9:30
Lophophora williamsii(peyote) 10:33
Ancistrocactus sheeri 12:46/14:33
Echinocereus enneacanthus 14:50
Jatropha cathartica 15:05
Agave lophantha 16:20
Yucca treculeana 17:43
Mammilaria heyderi 19:49
Agave asperrima 25:05
Austin, Texas
- nsp88
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Re: Rio Grande Valley, South Padre Island
Quite a few of those species strike me as Sonoran/Chihuahuan species. Odd to see them in this almost tropical setting. Those Agave asperrima in his video are quite petite. Maybe not the best spot for them to grow?Meangreen94z wrote: ↑Sat Dec 30, 2023 8:36 pm Here is a great video from “Crime pays but botany doesn’t”. Warning there is his typical foul language.
Here are the species and their approximate times in the video, some span multiple sections:
Hechtia glomerata 1:23
Jatropha dioica 7:05
Echinocactus texensis 9:30
Lophophora williamsii(peyote) 10:33
Ancistrocactus sheeri 12:46/14:33
Echinocereus enneacanthus 14:50
Jatropha cathartica 15:05
Agave lophantha 16:20
Yucca treculeana 17:43
Mammilaria heyderi 19:49
Agave asperrima 25:05
Looks like an Agave montana grown in full sun. They grow quite tightly when they’re in the desert. Most of the habitat shots are of mature plants and often in mixed canopy. They tolerate the full sun surprisingly well here in Salt Lake but it makes them look a little bit different.
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Re: Rio Grande Valley, South Padre Island
I went back earlier this year to see what it became and if it had any offsets. It turned out it was the same Agave as the one growing next to it, just younger.
Austin, Texas
- Meangreen94z
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Re: Rio Grande Valley, South Padre Island
That mesquite scrub brush extended all the way to ocean at one point. About a century ago the area was heavily cleared for farming. I think he has connections or maybe people contact him after seeing his videos and let him access their private ranches, where the land was undisturbed.Gafoto wrote: ↑Sun Dec 31, 2023 9:03 amQuite a few of those species strike me as Sonoran/Chihuahuan species. Odd to see them in this almost tropical setting. Those Agave asperrima in his video are quite petite. Maybe not the best spot for them to grow?Meangreen94z wrote: ↑Sat Dec 30, 2023 8:36 pm Here is a great video from “Crime pays but botany doesn’t”. Warning there is his typical foul language.
Here are the species and their approximate times in the video, some span multiple sections:
Hechtia glomerata 1:23
Jatropha dioica 7:05
Echinocactus texensis 9:30
Lophophora williamsii(peyote) 10:33
Ancistrocactus sheeri 12:46/14:33
Echinocereus enneacanthus 14:50
Jatropha cathartica 15:05
Agave lophantha 16:20
Yucca treculeana 17:43
Mammilaria heyderi 19:49
Agave asperrima 25:05
Looks like an Agave montana grown in full sun. They grow quite tightly when they’re in the desert. Most of the habitat shots are of mature plants and often in mixed canopy. They tolerate the full sun surprisingly well here in Salt Lake but it makes them look a little bit different.
If you head west along the border road Highway 83 things become arid quickly. By Rio Grande City it looks like desert. Agave asperrima and lopantha are both native, supposedly americana is as well. If you travel around Falcon Lake you can find both randomly growing in the brush. I’ve seen Agave lopantha that look straight from Home Depot or PDN growing there. It looks like asperrima extends west to around Laredo and then disappears.
Austin, Texas